blog on fri, mar 7

After work on the 6th I decided to trail over to the eateries one because I was hungry but also because two because this is around 10 pm and it is a perfect time to see people who are out of class and who are there in groups. I only stayed for about 30 minutes however while I was there I saw a lot of activity going on. I saw some smaller groups or pairs of girls sitting in the booths, and they were talking about there spring breaks, and some guys whats new. I also saw some large groups of mostly guys which consisted of about 12 people at times they were in there for the whole time I was there. Most of them were not even eating but they treated this community as a place to hang out and be social. I couldn’t really here what they were talking about but it appeared it was not to serious. It was mainly just a bunch of guys hanging out and joking around. It did appear that they were dressed better so they could have been figuring out what they were doing for the rest of the night. One of the last observations that I made was that the employees working there were a lot more social with themselves and with customers and just seemed to be having a better time due to the fact that they had something to do.

Blog on Fri, feb 22

On Thursday the 28th I went to observe the eateries again to see what kind of observations I could get this time. When I walked in it was moderately busy due to it being the afternoon in midweek. Most people here at this time are kids eating between classes so it’s not so much just kids hanging out and just looking for something to do. I noticed right away that at this time it was mostly pairs of people instead of some of the groups you see later on in the day. I think this is due to the types of people in there and by this I mean they are stopping by between classes. I tried to here some of the conversations and most had to due with classes they were just in or going to, and some of the dislikes or thoughts they had about the classes. For the few students who appeared to be there because they were hungry but they didn’t come from class, seemed to be more laid back. They were in sweatpants or just raggedy clothes and they were eating slowly, with casual conversation in between.

Today friday the 15th I went to my respected area to start observing again. Today I wanted to capture what kind of people went to the eateries instead of just describing the area. When i first got there it was not very crowded so i decided to try and figure out what kind of people they were. The only people i could see were the two workers at the counter and 3 girls, along with 2 guys. First being a guy myself i went to observe what the girls were saying. After hearing a brief conversation of theirs i understood them talking about a class they had together. They discussed how the teacher lesson was boring and how he monalogged. They than went on to discuss guys in the classroom. There was talk of who was cute and who was annoying, and after a few min of this i could hardly help running my head into a wall so i decided to see what the 2 guys were up to. When i got there they were just eating in silence for a few moments a habit that is shared by many men throughout the world. Finally when they finished eating they sat for a min and decided to start a brief conversation, and can you guess what about, thats right women. I didn't hear anything specific i just knew what they were talking about. After finishing that they discussed some sports mainly some things about the Red Wings, and shortly after that they stopped and got up and left. I tried to get some conversation from the workers but apparently they didn't like each other to much because they were just standing looking at the sky. After about an hour of listening to conversation i decided that not to many people come here until later in the evening and decided to leave for the day.

Observations of Eateries on Feb 9

I entered the eateries around 11:30 am through the main doors which are both glass so you can observe the food court from the outside. As you enter the eateries there are two sides, and than in front of you is the actual area where you get and pay for your food. They have Chinese and A&W on the left Sparro's, and Sunset strips a chicken company straight ahead. Than to the right is the healthy stop which consists of sandwiches and wraps, along with smoothies and ice cream. While getting my food i observed certain people would be on their phones or talking to friends while waiting in line. I noticed that the people working were new and it was apparent to me that the job's training came straight from ones own experience because they had no idea what they were doing. When i got up to get my wrap i basically had to tell him how to make the wrap when it was clearly written on the board. After that i went to pay which is two lines and it is also where you get lids and sporks for your food. While watching the people who were taking the orders it was clear that they did not like there job and they made it evident to the world. They stood with distain and looked at you as if you were bothering them. Finally i sat down and began to eat, and i sat near the window because there is better lighting. One thing i noticed right away and i have seen it before was that it was very segregated for the most part. You saw a few different races sitting together however most whites or oriental sat on the left side and most African Americans sat on the right. I don't know if it was intended but it is the way it usually is. I also noticed that the eateries is a place where smaller groups or individuals eat more often. When i eat at DC1 it usually is bigger groups but at the eateries it is usually 1 to 4 people, except for the occasional large group which usually forms over time. Meaning they didn't come together they just happened to see each other and sat together. Due to it being a saturday mourning it was not to busy so after 30 min i decided to leave the location due to not much change in the enviroment.

My first observations took place on Jan 29th at the Rec/Im. I first got there at 2:30 pm, and immedetially sat down in the lobby of the rec. I first started talking to aquatiances and than i sat and started to watch t.v.. As the gym got busier over the day people would walk past me and sit next to me, while talking or watching t.v.. There were guys next to me talking about the super bowl and then of course whenever a girl walked by they would discuss her physique. Than there were the girls who talked of events in the day and in the week. Most of the day this is what happened. At 3:30 pm i left for home.

Ideas of the David

Eastern Eateries 

Rec/Im

Library